M.M.KUMAR,J - (1.) THIS petition is directed against the notifications dated 5.3.1990 and 28.2.1991 issued under Section 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for brevity 'the Act') (Annexures P-4 and P-5 respectively). Even the award dated 22.2.1993 (Annexure P-6) has also been challenged.
(2.) THE principal ground of challenge in this petition, filed after fourteen years of the award, is that the possession of the land has not been taken, which is sought to be shown from the revenue record known as Khasra Girdawari (Annexure P-7) of the years 2001 to 2006. The petitioner has also taken the plea that in terms of Section 31 of the Act, the compensation has not been deposited with the Land Acquisition Collector and that some land has been released on 25.6.2004 (Annexure P-8) by respondent No. 2 in favour of certain persons. In the written statement, the stand taken by the respondents is that no writ petition would be maintainable after such an inordinate delay. On merit it has been asserted that the petitioners were not owner/tenant or interested person on the date when notification under Sections 4 and 6 of the Act were issued in the year 1990 and 1991 (P-4 and P-5) and award was announced on 22.2.1993 (P-6). As a matter of fact mutation in favour of the petitioner was sanctioned only on 17.4.1998 (Annexure R-IV) i.e. more than five years after announcement of the award. The respondents have also asserted in para Nos. 7 and 8 of the reply that the petitioner is in illegal possession over the land in dispute because after announcement of the award on 22.2.1993, possession of the land in dispute was taken over from the land owners and handed over to the Estate Officer, HUDA, Kaithal. It has also been asserted that the petitioner and other owners of land in dispute did not approach the respondents for receiving the amount of compensation by completing all the formalities required for disbursement of the compensation till date. According to the respondents, the land owners are even today free to receive the compensation at any time from the office of the answering respondent, after completing all the formalities.
(3.) TO support the aforesaid stand an additional affidavit dated 2.11.2007 by the Land Acquisition Collector, Panchkula has been filed bringing on file the revenue record for the years 1990-91 (Annexure R-I), 1995-96 (Annexure R-II) and 2000-01 (Annexure RIII), mutation No. 7686 (Annexure R-IV) and 7687 (Annexure R-V). The Estate Officer, Huda, Kaithal has also filed his reply taking a stand that all the proceedings have been taken in accordance with the provisions of the Act.;